The new Dhansiri bridge at Kuda village. (Morung Photo)
Morung Express News
Dimapur | December 21
2017 was a year marred by bridges falling apart either by neglect or the monsoon, besides the anti-ULB-election violence.
In July, after years of neglect, two important bridges – one over the Chathe river (Diphupar A-Naga United-Niuland) collapsed claiming 4 lives and another over the Dhansiri at Kuda village (formerly Full Nagarjan), was closed to vehicular traffic owing to a sinking foundation pillar. It was however opened to vehicular traffic after repairs.
It was followed by two more bridges getting swept away under Niuland ADC sub-division in September.
Almost three and a half years on, two new 2-lane bridges over the Dhansiri and Chathe were opened to vehicular traffic on December 21, 2020. Deputy Chief Minister Y Patton inaugurated the bridges today, along with a host of legislators, including PHED Minister Jacob Zhimomi and Advisor to Sericulture, Excise & Minority Affairs Zhaleo Rio and NPF MLA from 2 Dimapur II Moatoshi Aier.
Patton, who also holds charge of Roads & Bridges (PWD), described the bridges as of great importance. According to him, Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio insisted that the bridges be opened to traffic, by any means, before Christmas. He said that the completion of the bridges was the result of cooperation and support rendered by the public, especially to the contractor, whom he said did a fine job to complete it despite the challenges.
He also reminded the Commissioner & Secretary, Works & Housing to take note of an earlier official notification directing the installation of signboards, bearing the name of the contractor and the department official/incharge, on project sites. This, he said, would instill a greater care and responsibility.
Both the bridges were sanctioned by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways in July 2015 and the works were awarded to M/s Naagaamii Infratech Pvt. Ltd in June 2016. The original completion timeframe was 18 months and the construction of the new bridge could start only in October 2017.
According to Commissioner & Secretary, Works & Housing, Rovilatuo Mor, the old (collapsed) single lane steel girder bridge over the Chathe was built in 1988.
Besides the apparent neglect, movement of heavy vehicles and uncontrolled quarrying of boulders on the river bed near the bridge was attributed as causing the foundation to weaken.
He said, “Before dismantling, a temporary subway was required to be constructed. However, the subway was washed away which needed reconstruction… the unstable bridge collapsed on July 11, 2017 where four persons including a minor boy lost their lives.”
Meanwhile, a single-lane Bailey bridge was constructed adjacent to serve as a temporary alternative.
The old bridge at Kuda village, according to Mor, “was constructed by the British (Colonial) Government although there is no official record available. The bridge structure had out-aged its life over the years and the mid-pier started to sink towards the Power-house side thereby cracks on the structure developed and weakened the bridge.”
The original plan was to dismantle it and build a new one. But it was decided to preserve it as a “heritage structure.”
While stating that initial hiccups relating to relocation and acquiring land delayed commencement of work on the new bridge, he added, “The contractor took the initiative and the landowners agreed to provide land.”
The sanctioned costs for Chathe and Dhansiri were Rs 37.66cr and Rs 37.95cr, respectively.
Besides the monsoon, financial constraint was a big challenge for the state government, Mor said, while responding to a query from The Morung Express. “The funding pattern was such that for all the MORTH projects, normal allocation to the state was only 16cr per year,” he said, while adding apportioning funds to 20-30 projects becomes a difficult task.
The proprietor of the firm, Rokolhu Angami said that the COVID-19 pandemic delayed completion. “In fact we were targeting completion by June this year. But because of the COVID restrictions, it was delayed,” he said.
As for the Dhansiri Bridge, he said that the residents of the area wanted the old bridge to be preserved as heritage site. According to him, he had to acquire land as a result, on both sides, which delayed the start of work initially.
A prominent resident of Kuda village and former President of Naga Council Dimapur, Savi Liegise, who donated his land on the west bank, hoped that new bridge would also match the durability and strength of the old bridge. Citing verbal accounts of early residents, who settled as early as 1945, at Kuda village, he assumed the bridge was built during 1937-38 and could be one of the oldest British-built bridges in Nagaland and in the north-east.
“I wish some researchers would dig into the past (of) the colonial bridges and find out when it was built,” he said.
